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Monday, January 5, 2009

Pat the Bat gets Pay from Rays

As you've been hearing for over a week, the Rays have serious interest in Pat Burrell to fill their RF/DH needs. Fox Sports baseball insider Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the two sides are close to finalizing a 2 year deal that would pay Burrell roughly $16 million, while ESPN.com is saying the deal is already final.

From a phan's stand point, it may seem that general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. may have incorrectly evaluated the market for Burrell, when he thought signing Raul Ibanez for 3 yrs/$31.5 million was the best move. However, Burrell's defense and slow feet made him less desirable in the designated hitter-less National League. Teams like the Rays, who could use Pat's bat alone, were more interested in the veteran with 251 career homers.

I imagine this signing will increase interest levels in the Phillies/Rays on-deck series by huge margins. Perhaps an early April battle between Burrell's Girls and Raul's Fools are just what the Phaithful need to kick things off properly.